Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night Delayed to 2019, PS Vita Version Cancelled

Koji Igarashi says the cancellation is “largely due to” Sony’s plans to discontinue the Vita.

Koji Igarashi’s Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, developed by DICO and ArtPlay, has been delayed to 2019. The spiritual successor to Castlevania, developed by the man responsible for the much of the series’ hits, was originally slated to release this year.

In an update to Kickstarter backers, Igarashi said the delay was done to “raise the quality level” following feedback from the beta backer demo. Unfortunately, he also confirmed that the PlayStation Vita version was cancelled.

“This decision is largely due to Sony’s plans to discontinue the Vita console, ending production of physical copies and stopping certain online store support features,” said Igarashi. Given the lack of support for the handheld, and hybrid platforms like the Nintendo Switch being far more popular, it likely wouldn’t have made sense to continue developing for Vita. Backers who ordered this version can either change to a different desired platform or ask for a refund.

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night was delayed prior to this as well, shifting to a 2018 release window just two years ago. It’s still in development for PC, Xbox One, PS4, and Nintendo Switch.